RE: [AlpacaTalk] Let them eat cake.
Heather:
As a recent affiliate board member and (until last week) a member of the
Affiliate Congress, I want to correct a few minor errors in your post.
1) Stall fees and show entry fees are set by the show sponsor (local
affiliate), not by AOBA. As one who has helped create a budget for a show,
I assure you that most shows in our industry charge over $200/stall because
their cost structures require that just to cover expenses.
2) The federal government required AOBA to spin off the for-profit
organization, not because they were making money (they weren't), but because
of the kinds of activities they were involved in and how they related to the
charter. I think there are those who were closer to the action on this who
can provide more detailed comment if you need it.
3) I've never seen a livestock show where the stall fees were $25 other
than my local county fair - and it didn't have to lease the facilities, pay
judges, etc., because the fairgrounds had already been paid for by my taxes
and the judges were 4H volunteers, not trained, certified, judges who make
their livings judging shows.
I agree that the alpaca industry has long been centered around the idea that
alpaca farmers had money to spend. That was part of the image many people
bought into when they bought their alpacas. After all, sell a $30,000
alpaca and you can cover a lot of show stall fees, advertisements and
sponsorships. Most of us have never sold an alpaca for $30,000 (or anything
close to it) but we may well have paid that much for one, so now for us the
prices seem rather out of line because reality is setting in.
As an AOBA member you d0 have every right to complain. Please make sure
your complaints are based on facts, not rumors, and that you direct them to
the ears of the AOBA board members. They have been elected to guide our
organization, and they need to hear from every member that has an opinion
about how things are going. But don't get too hard on them - they serve as
unpaid volunteers who do what they do because they believe in this industry.
Thanks,
Don Stanwyck
Carnation, WA
From: AlpacaTalk@yahoogro
Behalf Of Heather Zeleny
Sent: Monday, November 10, 2008 9:25 PM
To: AlpacaTalk@yahoogro
Subject: Re: [AlpacaTalk] Let them eat cake.
Oh for goodness sake, I would not ban someone for disagreeing with me!
You must have me confused with someone else! ;>
Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I won't try to suppress
anyone's point of view. I don't know if you were a member here last
year when I was actually threatened by someone, and had all manner of
horrible thing said to and about me. I never banned any of those
people.
I'm sorry that you think my words and attitude sound like sour grapes.
As an AOBA member, I have every right to complain about the way its
run. There are those who have said to others that they have no right to
complain if they aren't even a member. So which is it, take my ball and
play by myself, or work to change the way things are?
I don't begrudge those rich folks their money, but the regressive
pricing scheme that AOBA presents to us little fishes just makes it
that much harder for us to compete. $5k for ILA? Pocket change to
those big guys. But for some people, it's 10-25% of their entire gross
annual income. Not so many of us have that kind of cash lying around.
$1500-5000 more for the AOBA "benefactor" program. Per year. Again,
pocket change for some, a major portion of one;s monthly income for
others. $795 for FRG? One week's pay, or possibly closer to two weeks
pay for some. Sour grapes?
I'm not disenfranchised, I'm an activist. Always have been. I look at
unfairness and speak out against it. Why on earth does AOBA need to
spin off a for profit corporation if they are in such dire need of
funds? They can't be that broke if they're making too much money to
qualify as a non-profit..
People write to me all the time privately and tell me what's on their
minds. I am by no means the only person who is dissatisfied with the
status quo. I have seen benefits whittled away over the years, and with
these "Benefactor" membership levels, what everyone used to have access
to, now only those fat cats can grasp. I say it's not right! AOBA is
OURS! Those benefits they keep taking away are OURS!
To answer your question as to why I bother being an AOBA member, well I
am the fleece show superintendent for our local affiliate. I can't do
that volunteer job unless I shell out the $125 AOBA farm membership
plus the $50 Show Division membership, plus my affiliate dues. I pay
$250 for the opportunity to spend countless hours without pay to put on
the fleece show. :) But I enjoy doing it, and I get a lot of pride in
doing it. Is is worth that $250? Obviously, because I pay it!
That's another thing that really makes me angry about AOBA's greed. The
non-show division member fee per show! I mean really, does it really
cost AOBA $75 per show per breeder for them to enter an AOBA sanctioned
show? $25 per show is much more reasonable, and people could enter more
shows if they have limited funds.
My sarcasm about the stalling rates at Nationals? Well, at other
livestock shows, stalls are $25. Entry fees are $15. How is the same
stall worth so much more money simply because it's occupied by an
alpaca? I do not see it.
I think it's pretty sad, when someone has a legitimate complaint, they
are told to shut up and stop causing trouble. If you don't like it,
leave. Well I'm sorry but I can't do that. I am a member, and I do have
a say!
Heather
On Nov 10, 2008, at 8:53 PM, Patti Jennings wrote:
> Heather
> I am not an "active" participant of this group; I have been reading it
> with interest over several months. I have watched this particular
> discussion and previous similar ones can no longer remain silent.
> Heather, I realize that this is "Your" group. You certainly have the
> right to express your opinion because you do 'own' (for lack of a
> better word) the group. However
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posted by Chaddo at 10:26 PM
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